Starting A Bike Shop....

[Simpson]

I'm out of this now because your just pissing me off now and I don't want to rant.

It's easy to "dare" with someone elses money.

[JD™]

I'm in the same position as Simps here, in that I don't want to invest the time in doing your work for you. Let's just say that your estimates are completely wrong. I own a very small marketing business which deals specifically with small to medium sized businesses in a niche. As well as that, I spent 5 years dealing with 120 small to medium sized bike shops on a daily basis with a specific interest in where their sales levels were. That's not an 'ooooo, look at me' statement, merely hopefully to prove that I'm not just trying to troll your idea. It's more that I wouldn't want to see a member of this community crash and burn, even if I haven't seen you here much.

Do yourself a favour: Take over a shop that exists already so that you'll know the figures and have a plan to increase them, or rent some storage space and start something online. Even then I wouldn't bother these days - unless you can cover a specific niche you'll have too much competition.

[hI-OOPS-CAPS]

I believe in you jonalong!! Don't listen to these non-believers.

[Jonalong]

Thanks very much JD, appreciate it.

This is what it mainly comes down to, there is a massive gap in the market, that is my primary reason for wanting to do this, not for the 'fun' of owning a bike shop, i want to start my own business that is going to be successful!

I would kick myself in years to come when one opens up and does hugely well due to the demand in my local area!

I don't mean to piss people off!

Thanks hi-OOPS -CAPS!! thats the attitude!!

[Jonalong]

I'm in the same position as Simps here, in that I don't want to invest the time in doing your work for you. Let's just say that your estimates are completely wrong. I own a very small marketing business which deals specifically with small to medium sized businesses in a niche. As well as that, I spent 5 years dealing with 120 small to medium sized bike shops on a daily basis with a specific interest in where their sales levels were. That's not an 'ooooo, look at me' statement, merely hopefully to prove that I'm not just trying to troll your idea. It's more that I wouldn't want to see a member of this community crash and burn, even if I haven't seen you here much.

Do yourself a favour: Take over a shop that exists already so that you'll know the figures and have a plan to increase them, or rent some storage space and start something online. Even then I wouldn't bother these days - unless you can cover a specific niche you'll have too much competition.

I know you don't want to do the donkey work for me, but could you give me an idea as to where you think i'm going completely wrong?!

Cheers.

Jon

[Matt Vandart]

Dude, I'm right behind you, go for it, if you don't try it you will probably regret it, don't use your own money, don't use your rents money, don't use friends money, use the banks/investors money.

I got my figures from opening a bike shop just before the recession and also just before the price of bikes to retailers took a 30% (?) hike.

Just putting this to you in case you havn't thought of it. There may be a hole in the market for a reason. I can almost guarantee you are not the only person that has thought of this, is there a halfords? If there isn't ask yourself why. They have teams dedicated to finding places to open up and will have done a very good market research program. Bare in mind cyclists are VERY loyal to their bike shop. Great if you are the shop, shite if you are the competition.

[JD™]

I guess the main thing is wanting to know how you're expecting, from my fag packet calculations, to be selling a bike a day. Many many local shops aren't hitting one every 3 so I'd be interested in seeing your market research. I come from Caterham originally and know Tunbridge Wells fairly well. It's obviously an affluent market but I can't see where you're getting those figures from. Obviously happy to be proved wrong!

[Jonalong]

Dude, I'm right behind you, go for it, if you don't try it you will probably regret it, don't use your own money, don't use your rents money, don't use friends money, use the banks/investors money.

I got my figures from opening a bike shop just before the recession and also just before the price of bikes to retailers took a 30% (?) hike.

Just putting this to you in case you havn't thought of it. There may be a hole in the market for a reason. I can almost guarantee you are not the only person that has thought of this, is there a halfords? If there isn't ask yourself why. They have teams dedicated to finding places to open up and will have done a very good market research program. Bare in mind cyclists are VERY loyal to their bike shop. Great if you are the shop, shite if you are the competition.

Hi Mate, we have a Halfords, but it's out of town, and the bike section is always snowed under, you cant even talk to an adviser without standing for half and hour patiently waiting for them!

Point taken though! Your advice is not falling on to deaf ears! I will still persue the banks for thier investment over any other alternative.

I guess the main thing is wanting to know how you're expecting, from my fag packet calculations, to be selling a bike a day. Many many local shops aren't hitting one every 3 so I'd be interested in seeing your market research. I come from Caterham originally and know Tunbridge Wells fairly well. It's obviously an affluent market but I can't see where you're getting those figures from. Obviously happy to be proved wrong!

Your fag packet calculations are correct! i am planning on selling around 6 - 7 bikes a week - although not completely dependent on this.. They vary in value but there is such a hole in the market for regular everyday bikes that commuters, women and leisurely bikers want that they have so limited choice of at the moment... Tunbridge wells has a catchment area of over 100,000 (wealthy) people, the value of bikes sold to well off londoners should be enough to keep a steady flow bike sales.... as I say though, the shop should be over to tick over on servicing and maintenance alone... this seems to be the general consensus in the bike shop owners world! (And judging by the business of the other local shops!)

[JD™]

Have you done any actual research to know whether any of those 100,000 people actually want a bike though? Until you've got people really saying they want to get involved and support a local bike shop then there might as well be 0 people, or 1,000,000 who suffer from a manic phobia of the outdoors.

What I'd probably do if I were in your situation would be start up a Facebook page and spend some money advertising it to the Tunbridge Wells area for a while saying that you're 'coming soon' and to like the page to be kept up to date of the shop opening and to be given FB exclusive deals when the time comes. Then, if no-one hits like you know you've got to re-think, and if 500 people hit like in a week you know you've got a potential business. Hey presto, super quick market research.

[N.Wood]

A couple thoughts I had:

I'd probably class my dad as your target audience - a mid 50's man who works in the City and sometimes commutes, does the london to brighton and Thames Bridges rides etc. He lives in Bromley and although we used to go into Bromley Bikes for bits now and again, 90% of the stuff he buys is from Evans in Fenchurch St as its literally opposite his office and he goes in a lunch or whatever. Very rarely buys online and will pay £££ to have it right there right now.

i guess you'd have to peel him away from Evans and make him want to go to your store at the weekend.

JD, I agree a FB thing like that would definately be worth doing, but if (as i understand it) my dad is a target audience, he doesn't have an fb account, and 99% of his coworkers don't either.

[JD™]

Yea I did mean to put in there that obviously it wouldn't be all encompassing, but there's 42 million UK users of Facebook, 34% of them are over 35, the fastest growing demographic is 35-45 year old, and you can target them by age, location, interests, etc so that you purposefully don't hit the 14 year olds with no cash. Always do as many forms of research as you can, including standing out on the street that you plan to open on looking like a pleb simply asking everyone who goes past whether they'd visit a local bike shop.

[Jonalong]

A couple thoughts I had:

I'd probably class my dad as your target audience - a mid 50's man who works in the City and sometimes commutes, does the london to brighton and Thames Bridges rides etc. He lives in Bromley and although we used to go into Bromley Bikes for bits now and again, 90% of the stuff he buys is from Evans in Fenchurch St as its literally opposite his office and he goes in a lunch or whatever. Very rarely buys online and will pay £££ to have it right there right now.

i guess you'd have to peel him away from Evans and make him want to go to your store at the weekend.

JD, I agree a FB thing like that would definately be worth doing, but if (as i understand it) my dad is a target audience, he doesn't have an fb account, and 99% of his coworkers don't either.

Thanks mate, I agree with you! Passing traffic should account for a huge amount of sales. Once the locals realise they have an alternative to what is currently available, that is open more hours and can service their bike for the next day, rather than the next month - they hopefully should be peeled away from old habits!

And yeah - JD that is the main market research that I have done so far, asking people what they want. And the overall consensus so far has been yes, we want it, go for it!

I spend a lot of days and nights riding around town, when you are on a bike you realise how many other people are also out on them! Begging for somewhere to grease their squeeky crank!

[DrEvil270183]

I think your workshop figures are a little out too dude. Our workshop runs 3 mechanics, we can't get anyone in for a service until 10th October at moment with building new bikes that have been sold, performing 6 week services on the sold bikes and then repairs. Plus building bikes for display etc. Our workshop can make anywhere between £20 a day sometimes and other times £150. Hardly ever much more.

We have a pretty decent range of bikes with about 6 staff working a weekend day and we'll sell on average 12/15 bike on a Saturday say. It took us a couple of years to make profit and similar to gain regular customers. The hard parts is everyone is always having sales, the smaller you are the more impact this will have on you.

You might be better looking at mobile repairs or something.